Today show viewers will be seeing more of Hoda Kotb for the foreseeable future.
Us Weekly can confirm that Kotb, 61, will continue to host the NBC morning show alongside Craig Melvin amid Savannah Guthrie’s absence. Savannah, 54, has taken an extended hiatus from the Today show as the search for her mother, Nancy Guthrie, continues in Arizona.
News broke on February 1 that Nancy, 84, went missing from her Tucson home hours after being dropped off by family members. Authorities have yet to name a suspect connected with her disappearance. However, the FBI released footage of the possible assailant earlier this month as taken from Nancy’s security cameras. Authorities and Savannah have asked anyone with information to come forward. The Guthrie family has offered a $1 million reward with anyone who might be able to help.
“Coming on to say it is day 24 since our mom was taken in the dark of night from her bed, and every hour and minute and second and every long night has been agony since then, of worrying about her and fearing for her, aching for her, and most of all, just missing her, missing her,” Savannah said in a video posted via Instagram on Tuesday, February 24, noting that her family still believes “in a miracle” and hopes Nancy will be returned.
“We know that millions of you have been praying. So many people have been praying of every faith and no faith at all, praying for her return, and we feel those prayers,” she added. “Please keep praying without ceasing. We still believe.”
For the first time, Savannah noted that Nancy “may already be gone” in the wake of her disappearance.
“We also know that she may be lost,” she said. “But we need to know where she is. We need her to come home.”
Savannah Guthrie’s Mom Nancy Guthrie Is Missing in Arizona: What to Know
Savannah stepped away from the Today show on February 2. Kotb made her return to the desk on February 6. She and Melvin, 46, have been offering daily updates as the search for Nancy continues.
Kotb hosted Today alongside Savannah from 2018 until her January 2025 departure from the show. Kotb announced in September 2024 that she would be leaving the show after nearly 30 years at NBC. (Kotb has made periodic appearances on the show since her final episode.)
“I realized that it was time for me to turn the page at 60, and to try something new,” she said during the emotional announcement. “This is the right time for me to move on.”
Savannah added, “We love you so much … no one at the show wants to imagine this place without you.”
Kotb further explained that her daughters, Haley, 8, and Hope, 6, were the main reason for her departure.
“As I write this, my heart is all over the map,” Kotb wrote in an essay for Today.com. “I know I’m making the right decision, but it’s a painful one. And you all are the reason why. They say two things can be right at the same time, and I’m feeling that so deeply right now. I love you and it’s time for me to leave the show.”
